Folding table.



J. DEFATSOH. FOLDING TABLE.

APPLICATION rum) 001224, 1911.

1,034,885, Patented Aug. 6, 1912.

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FOLDIN BLB.

APPLIOATION r1 1: 001.24, 1911.

1,034,885. Patented 6,1912.

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J. DBFATSGH. FOLDING TABLE.

APPLICATION FILED OUT. 24, 1911. 1,034,885, Patented Aug. 6, 1912.

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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JOSEPH DEFATSGH, OF NEWARK, NEW JERSEY.

FOLDING TABLE.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, J osnrl-r DEFATSCH, a citizen of the United States,residing at Newark, in the county of Essex and State of New Jersey, haveinvented certain new and useful Improvements in Folding Tables; and I dohereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact descriptionof the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to whichit appertains to make and use the same, reference being had to theaccompanying drawings, and to characters of reference marked thereon,which form a part of this specification.

This invention relates, generally, to improvements in tables; and, thepresent invention has reference, more particularly, to improvements inthat class of tables, in which the legs or supporting members arefoldably connected with the table-member, with a view of providing anovel and simply constructed folding table which is especially adaptedfor use at card parties and the like, and the legs or supporting membersof which are adapted to be folded close upon or against the back of thetable-member, when not in use, so that a great many tables may be placedupon each other and still occupy a small space.

The invention has for its further object to provide a novel and readilymanipulable locking or holding means to be used with the legs orsupporting members of the table, so as to retain the table in itsupright position and to prevent the collapsing of the legs thereof, whenthe table is in use.

Other objects of this invention not at this time more particularlyenumerated, will be clearly understood from the following detaileddescription of the same.

With the various objects of the present invention in view, the saidinvention, consists, primarily, in the novel folding table hereinafterset forth; and, the said invention consists, furthermore, in the novelarrangements and combinations of the various parts thereof, as well asin the details of the construction of the same, all of which will bemore particularly described in the following specification and thenfinally embodied in the clauses of the claim which are appended to andwhich form an essential part of the present invention The invention isclearly illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 isan elevation of a folding table Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed October 24, 1911.

Patented Aug. 6, 1912.

Serial No. 656,473.

made according to and embodying the principles of the present invention,the said table being represented in its upright position with theleg-members thereof in their locked engagement to prevent collapsing ofthe table. Fig. 2 is a vertical section of the table shown in said Fig.1, said section being taken on line 2-2 in said Fig. 1, looking in thedirection of the arrow :0, and Fig. 3 is a bottom plan View of thetable, with its legs or supporting members in their disconnectedrelation and folded directly upon the back of the table-member.

Similar characters of reference are employed in all of the abovedescribed views, to indicate corresponding parts.

Referring now to the several figures of the drawings, thereference-character 1 indicates a complete table, showing one embodimentof the principles of the present invention, the said table comprising atop or table-member 2 of any suitable shape or marginal configuration,and upon the bottom of which are pivotally secured by means of suitablyconstructed hinge-members 3, or any other suitably constructedconnecting devices, suitably formed legs or supporting members 4 and 5,and 6 and 7. At points substantially midway between the hingedend-portions and the free supporting ends of the several legs orsupporting members, are secured by means of screws 8, or other suitablyformed fastening means, transversely extending cross-bars 9 and 10. Thecross-bar 9 is socured at its respective end-portions to the legs orsupporting members land 5, and the cross-bar 10 is secured at itsrespective end-portions to the legs or supporting members (3 and 7 ofthe table, as will be clearly evident from an inspection of the severalfigures of the drawings, the said supporting members having a staggeredrelation, that is, the leg 6 lies between the legs at and 5, and the leg7 lies without the leg 5, whereby the cross-bars 9 and 10 act as stopsto prevent the legs unfolding beyond a certain limit, as will presentlyappear.

When the pairs of connected legs or supporting members of the table havebeen brought into their opened and supporting relation, in the mannerillustrated in Figs. 1 and 2 of the drawings, the upper marginaledge-portion 11 of the laterally extending cross-bar 10 is broughtdirectly beneath the marginal edge-portion 12 of the other cross bar 9,substantially in the manner shown in Fig. 2 of the drawings, and wherebythe said cross-bar 10 serves as a support for the cross-bar 9, as willbe clearly understood. To prevent the collapsing of the pairs ofsupporting members or legs of the table, when brought into theirsupporting relation, a suitably formed locking means is employed inconnection with the said crossbars just mentioned. One form of lockingmeans is here shown, and the same consists, essentially, of a plate ormember 13 which is suitably secured to the said cross-bar 10 by means ofrivets lt and is provided with a pintle-receiving ear 15. Pivotallyconnected with this plate or member 13, by means of a pintle 16 whichextends through the ear 15 of the plate 13 and through the ears 18, is asnap-plate or member 17. This snap-plate or member 17 is formed with acurved locking portion which is adapted to be sprung into detachableholding engagement with the edge-portion 20 of the crossbar 9 and isformed with a finger-piece 21 for removing the said snap-member from itsholding engagement with the said cross-bar 9, as will be clearlyevident. When the parts are in their relative positions indicated inFigs. 1 and 2 of the drawings, the pairs of connected legs or supportingmemhere will be rigidly secured in their locked, but separable relationto each other, as will be clearly evident; and, by the disengagement ofthe said snap-plate 17 from 'its practical holding engagement with thecross-bar 9, the pairs of legs or supporting members are readily broughtinto their folded relation upon the back of the tablemember 2, as willbe clearly understood from an inspection of Fig. 3 of the drawings. Inpractice, I prefer toconstruct said table-member and the legs orsupporting members of wood, and the cross-bars 9 and 10 are preferablymade of band-iron, but of course it will be understood that these partsmay be made of other suit-able material. I am aware, also, that somechanges may be made in the general arrangements and combinations of thevarious devices and parts, as well as in the details of the constructionof the same, without departing from the scope of my present invent-ionas set forth in the foregoing specification, and as defined in theseveral clauses of the claims which are appended thereto. Hence, I donot limit my present invention to the exact arrangements andcombinations of the various devices and parts as described in the saidspecification, nor do I confine myself to the exact details of theconstruction of the said parts as illustrated in the accompanyingdrawings.

I claim:

1. A folding table comprising a table member, pairs of legs foldablyconnected with said table-member, a transversely extending cross-barconnected with each pair of legs, the marginal edge-portion of onecross-bar being adapted to be brought into supporting engagement withthe marginal edge-portion. of the other cross-bar, and the said pairs oflegs having a staggered relation to each other so that one of the legsof each pair lies between the legs of the opposite pair, whereby saidcross-bars act as stops to prevent the legs unfolding beyond a certainlimit.

2. A. folding table comprising a table member, pairs of legs foldablyconnected with said table-member, a transversely extending cross-barconnected with each pair of legs, the marginal edge-portion of onecross-bar being adapted to be brought into supporting engagement withthe marginal edge-portion of the other cross-bar, the said pairs of legshaving a staggered relation to each other so that one of the legs ofeach pair lies between the legs of the opposite pair, whereby saidcross-bars act as stops to prevent the legs unfolding beyond a certainlimit, and means connected with one of said cross-bars having a portionadapted to be brought into holding engagement with the other cross-bar.

3. A folding table comprising a table member, pairs of legs foldablyconnected with said table-member, a transversely eX- tending cross-barconnected with each pair of legs, the marginal edge-portion of the onecross-bar being brought into supporting engagement with the marginaledge-portion of the other crossbar, the said pairs of legs having astaggered relation to each other so that one of the legs of each pairlies between the legs of the opposite pair, whereby said cross-bars actas stops to prevent the legs unfolding beyond a certain limit, and asnap-catch for retaining the table-legs in their unfolded relation,consisting of a hinge-plate secured to one of said crossbars, a secondhinge-plate pivotally connected with said first-mentioned hinge-plate, acurved retaining or looking portion connected with said second-mentionedhinge-plate, said retaining or locking portion being adapted to besnapped into holding engagement with the other cross-bar, and afingerpiece connected with said retaining or looking portion.

In testimony, that I claim the invention set forth above I have hereuntoset my hand this 20th day of ()ctober, 1911.

JOSEPH DEFATSCH.

Witnesses:

FREDK. C. FRAENTZEL, FREDK. H. W. FRAENTZEL.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressingthe Commissioner of l'atents, Washington, D. G.

